Huskers Fall in Five-Set Thriller at Texas

Austin, Texas – The No. 12 Nebraska volleyball team (7-2) fell 3-2 (25-20, 19-25, 25-27, 25-21, 12-15) to the No. 6 Texas Longhorns on Sunday afternoon at Gregory Gym on the campus of the University of Texas. In front of a hostile 4,213 fans, the Huskers used a comeback effort to force their first five set match of the season after being down 2-1 in the match.

Kelsey Robinson led Nebraska on the day with a season-high 26 kills on 66 attacks. Kadie Rolfzen tallied 13 kills, while Amber Rolfzen had 12 and Meghan Haggerty notched 11. Robinson and Amber Rolfzen recorded double-doubles with 23 and 13 digs, respectively. Pollmiller paced the offense with a season-high 62 assists. Justine Wong-Orantes had 22 digs for NU.

Nebraska hit .223 for the match, while Texas hit .232. The Huskers were out-blocked 16-9, but out-dug the Longhorns 89-76.

The Huskers came out to a 4-3 lead on a kill by Robinson, as the two teams traded leads and tied four times until the Longhorns went up 15-13 and a timeout was called on the floor. Pollmiller guided NU from the service line, sparking a 5-0 run in helping NU take a 23-19 lead, its largest of the set, and force Texas to call another timeout. Two kills from Robinson helped the Huskers win the first set, 25-20.

Robinson led NU in the first set with six kills, while Amber Rolfzen had four. Pollmiller dished out 13 assists as the Huskers hit .243 as a team. Texas was held to a .118 hitting clip and NU out-blocked UT 3-2 and out-dug the Longhorns 18-14.

Nebraska opened the second set with a 4-1 advantage on a double-block from Hall and Amber Rolfzen. A 3-0 run pushed Nebraska to go up 11-7, but the Longhorns fought back to take a 14-13 lead, their first of the set. Texas used a 4-0 run to spur them to a 19-15 advantage and force Nebraska to call a timeout. A kill from Robinson cut UT’s lead to 23-19, but Nebraska was not able to overcome the deficit and lost the second set 25-19.

Robinson posted four kills in the second set, while Amber Rolfzen, Hall and Haggerty all had two kills. Nebraska hit .105 in the set, while Texas hit at a clip of .257. Nebraska was out-blocked 2-5 as a team.

Texas opened up the third set with an 8-4 lead as Nebraska called a timeout. The two teams tied seven times and fought point-for-point as a huge double-block from Robinson and Haggerty gave Nebraska its first lead of the set at 20-19. Texas went on a 3-0 run to make it 23-21, UT, as Nebraska then called a timeout. The Huskers fought off five set points from the Longhorns, but Texas came out on top in the third set, winning 27-25.

Robinson and Kadie Rolfzen both had five kills in the third set. Nebraska hit .317 as a team, while Texas hit .261. The Longhorns out-blocked Nebraska 4-3 in the set.

The intensity did not let up in the fourth set, as Nebraska took a 6-5 lead on a kill from Kadie Rolfzen. An ace from Amber Rolfzen, followed by an error by the Longhorns put NU up 13-11 and forced UT to use a timeout. Texas used a 4-0 run to take a 16-15 lead, but the Huskers answered with a 3-0 run to go up 18-16. The Huskers held on through the end of the fourth set to win 25-21 and force the match to a fifth set.

Robinson continued to lead NU offensively with eight kills, while Kadie Rolfzen had five. Pollmiller tallied 17 assists as Nebraska hit .226 in the set. Texas hit at a clip of .261.

Nebraska went up 5-3 in the fifth set on a kill from Amber Rolfzen. A kill from Haggerty tied the set at 7-7, but Texas went up 8-7 as the two teams switched sides. The Longhorns stretched their lead to 10-7 and Nebraska used a timeout, but the Huskers came back to cut the UT lead to 11-10. Texas gained a 13-10 advantage in the fifth and went on to win 15-12, sealing the match win.

The Huskers hit the road again next weekend as they open Big Ten play at Northwestern on Friday, Sept. 27, before taking on Illinois on Saturday, Sept. 28.